Alexandra Lee Jessica Freeman, Baroness Freeman of Steventon (born March 1974) is a British science communicator, life peer, and former television producer. She has been a crossbench member of the House of Lords since 2024.
The Baroness Freeman of Steventon | |
---|---|
Member of the House of Lords Lord Temporal | |
Assumed office 5 June 2024 Life peerage | |
Personal details | |
Born | Alexandra Lee Jessica Freeman March 1974 (age 50) Maryland, United States |
Nationality | British |
Political party | None (crossbencher) |
Alma mater | University of Oxford |
Biography
editFreeman was born in March 1974 in Maryland, United States.[1][2] She studied biological sciences at the University of Oxford, before remaining at the university to undertake a Doctor of Philosophy (DPhil) degree in zoology.[3][4] Her doctoral thesis was titled "Butterflies as signal receivers" and was completed in 1998.[5] As a postgraduate, she was a member of Linacre College, Oxford and the Department of Zoology.[5]
From 2000 to 2016, Freeman worked for the BBC.[3] As a producer or director, she was involved in Walking with Beasts, Life in the Undergrowth, Bang Goes the Theory, Climate Change by Numbers and Trust Me, I'm a Doctor.[6]
In 2016, Freeman joined the University of Cambridge as executive director of the Winton Centre for Risk and Evidence Communication in the Faculty of Mathematics.[7]
Freeman was recommended for appointment as a non-party-political life peer by the House of Lords Appointments Commission in May 2024.[1] She was created Baroness Freeman of Steventon, of Abingdon in the County of Oxfordshire, on 5 June 2024,[8] and was introduced to the House of Lords on 29 July as a crossbencher.[9][10]
Selected works
edit- van der Bles, Anne Marthe; van der Linden, Sander; Freeman, Alexandra L. J.; Mitchell, James; Galvao, Ana B.; Zaval, Lisa; Spiegelhalter, David J. (May 2019). "Communicating uncertainty about facts, numbers and science". Royal Society Open Science. 6 (5): 181870. doi:10.1098/rsos.181870. PMC 6549952.
- van der Bles, Anne Marthe; van der Linden, Sander; Freeman, Alexandra L. J.; Spiegelhalter, David J. (7 April 2020). "The effects of communicating uncertainty on public trust in facts and numbers". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 117 (14): 7672–7683. doi:10.1073/pnas.1913678117. PMC 7149229.
- Dryhurst, Sarah; Schneider, Claudia R.; Kerr, John; Freeman, Alexandra L. J.; Recchia, Gabriel; van der Bles, Anne Marthe; Spiegelhalter, David; van der Linden, Sander (2 August 2020). "Risk perceptions of COVID-19 around the world". Journal of Risk Research. 23 (7–8): 994–1006. doi:10.1080/13669877.2020.1758193.
- Roozenbeek, Jon; Schneider, Claudia R.; Dryhurst, Sarah; Kerr, John; Freeman, Alexandra L. J.; Recchia, Gabriel; van der Bles, Anne Marthe; van der Linden, Sander (October 2020). "Susceptibility to misinformation about COVID-19 around the world". Royal Society Open Science. 7 (10): 201199. doi:10.1098/rsos.201199.
- Freeman, Alexandra LJ; Parker, Simon; Noakes, Catherine; Fitzgerald, Shaun; Smyth, Alexandra; Macbeth, Ron; Spiegelhalter, David; Rutter, Harry (December 2021). "Expert elicitation on the relative importance of possible SARS-CoV-2 transmission routes and the effectiveness of mitigations" (PDF). BMJ Open. 11 (12): e050869. doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2021-050869.
References
edit- ^ a b "PRESS RELEASE: Two new non-party-political peers – House of Lords Appointments Commission" (pdf). lordsappointments.independent.gov.uk. House of Lords Appointments Commission. 7 May 2024. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
- ^ "Alexandra Lee Jessica FREEMAN personal appointments - Find and update company information - GOV.UK". find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
- ^ a b "ORCID: Alexandra Freeman". orcid.org. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
- ^ "Session 1: Researchers and engagement: Alex Freeman". Sense about Science. 21 February 2023. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
- ^ a b Freeman, Alexandra (1998). Butterflies as signal receivers (DPhil thesis). University of Oxford. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
- ^ "Alexandra Freeman". Harding-Zentrum für Risikokompetenz. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
- ^ "People: Executive Director Dr Alexandra Freeman". Winton Centre for Risk and Evidence Communication. University of Cambridge. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
- ^ "No. 64419". The London Gazette. 11 June 2024. p. 11226.
- ^ "Introduction: Baroness Freeman of Steventon". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol. 839. Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Lords. 29 July 2024. col. 791.
- ^ "Baroness Freeman of Steventon: Parliamentary career". UK Parliament. Retrieved 7 June 2024.